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Project DVD-PC (catchy name huh!)

Discussion in 'Project Logs' started by sco0by, 7 Jan 2003.

  1. sco0by

    sco0by Mmm pie.

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    Seeing as its the new year I thought I would finally make a start on my first proper mod - a home theatre pc for the living room.

    The design for the case is a no brainer - considering I have a broken DVD player in the cupboard - I plan to use the casing for that as my pc case.

    I forgot to take a pic of the DVD player before it was taken apart :blush: but it used to look like this:
    [​IMG]

    And now its spread all over the place :p

    The chassis is in the shed - having all the bumps dremelled out so that the components can sit properly.
    This is the chassis before being attacked:
    [​IMG]
    I haven't finished removing the lumps yet as its bloody cold out there! :brrr: but soon the chassis will be flat.

    I plan to use a Mini-ITX mobo (Via Epia-M 9000 to precise) along with a MicroATX PSU, and a 3.5" HD. The layout should look something like this:
    [​IMG]

    Next problem to sort out is the DVD drive itself as it goes slap-bang in the middle of everything.

    Sadly the existing drive in the DVD player was proprietary, so I cant use it - although I do have a spare Panasonic 16x DVD drive lying around so I'm using that instead.

    [​IMG]

    Conveniently the front cover for the DVD player clips onto the Panasonic drive, although I did have to remove the steel case and cut away part of the plastic around the front in order to get the drive to close fully.

    The plan is to try and get the chassis sorted with the drive fixed in before I buy any of the expensive bits (plus I have to wait for payday :lol: )

    This pic shows you a rough idea of how the DVD drive will sit in relation to the front of the case:
    [​IMG]

    Tomorrow (weather permitting) I`ll finish Dremelling the chassis and go to B&Q to get some long bolts to mount the DVD drive in place.

    :naughty:
     
    Last edited: 9 Jan 2003
  2. webchimp

    webchimp What's a Dremel?

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    Thassagoodidea, will you be able to make all the buttons and stuff do things?
     
  3. Hiren

    Hiren mind control Moderator

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    Hmm interesting project. Although how will you control the player? Remote?
     
  4. :: Phat ::

    :: Phat :: Oooh shakalaka!

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    Handy to see Panasonic using the same tray front in it's drives, like Mashie said when he was building Oneone, its nice to mod something without too much hasstle... (or something similar!)

    Looking good, keep us updated! :)
     
  5. TwiztedE

    TwiztedE What's a Dremel?

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    Me Likes

    Thats a kool ass idea. just wondering tho Like WebChimp sais are all tyhe buttons going to do things. Like Play turns on the Pc and Stop ShutsDown/Restarts the pc or what? interested now :)
     
  6. the_secret

    the_secret What's a Dremel?

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    -> looking good ... nice idea

    -> you really should get the buttons on the case to work .. it would be really sweet if it did.
     
  7. sco0by

    sco0by Mmm pie.

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    I just realised - I spelt the project title wrong! :wallbash: doh!

    No Dremelling last night - was too cold in the shed & was snowing - in London! :eeek:

    The buttons on the front of the player use lil switches mounted on PCb's, so it shouldnt be too hard to use the power and eject buttons for the pc. Not sure what the other buttons can be used for tho...

    Off to B&Q tonight for bolts! hehe
     
  8. essjaytee

    essjaytee emtarkanderundergunderson

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    heh, that's what I'm doing on my project, I already have the power switch from the original receiver turn on the PC... I just don't know what else to have them do :)

    nice looking project, ours are fairly similar :) Can't wait to see more progress and pics :rock:
     
  9. Penrhos

    Penrhos What's a Dremel?

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    Nice choice of CD-R in the drive - LOL, need to get buttons working and a nice lcd where the display was, or even a led-bar chart. like the radio mod (project anenome?)
     
  10. Morphine

    Morphine weeee!

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    get a small VFD i think they have 1x16 ones that will work and are very cheap. that way you can replace the current display. i have also seen remote control kits go cheap and have seen these wired to power buttons.
     
  11. sco0by

    sco0by Mmm pie.

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    Phew - well I have finally got the dvd drive properly aligned so that it opens and closes without getting jammed.
    I had to dremel out a lot of plastic from the front facia of the dvd player to get it to fit, not to mention knock a few lumps out of the dvd drive itself. I hope it still works ok after all this abuse :worried:

    Before: (no its not gold - i forgot to turn the flash on! :lol: )
    [​IMG]

    And after: (flash on this time)
    [​IMG]

    Now once the dvd drive is fitted - it opens and closes without jamming or catching.

    [​IMG]

    I just need to bolt it in place now - as soon as I can find long enuff bolts that will fit into the existing screw-holes on the bottom of the dvd drive.

    Over the weekend I plan to get the drive mounted properly and securely so that it opens and closes ok, then next week I can start ordering the bits to make it work! :naughty:

    Modding takes so long tho! lol
     
  12. ouija

    ouija Trust me, I am doctor!

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    Looking good!

    /me steals your Dremel (mines is a cheap immitation :()
     
  13. complexprocess

    complexprocess What's a Dremel?

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    Probably smart to seal that drive up when you're done. All the dust that eventually gets into even the cleanest PC might play havoc with your laser.

    Looking very cool. It's awesome that the drive face worked out so well. Maybe some sort of serial connection and a little custom software will allow you to use the buttons, even though I'm sure you'll mostly use a remote. It would just be a really cool detail.
     
  14. |V| 4 L k i 3 R

    |V| 4 L k i 3 R Minimodder

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    Software?

    I have often thought about a pc for to hook up to my stereo but never figured out what software to use and so I didn't get very far. What software do you plan to run on this badboy?:confused:
     
  15. Moreland

    Moreland banned

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    this looks really intresting, i hope you take the time to get the controls working, remote would be handy as well, but i suppose you could always get that predone from meblin mods :D
     
  16. sco0by

    sco0by Mmm pie.

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    I have kept the pcb boards which go behind the facia and have the buttons on them. It should be possible to run wires from the switch on the dvd drive (as shown by Zapwizard here: http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?s=&postid=234404 ) to the open button on the front of the player. I'm not bothered about the drive's LED as i really dont want a blinking light distracting me when im trying to watch a film! :eeek:

    Software wise I wouldnt mind that Windows XP Media Centre edition, but I hear its going to be OEM only. Failing that I'd be quite happy to use WinXP Pro.

    I just wish I could bring the project to work and work on it here :naughty:
     
  17. Atomic

    Atomic Gerwaff

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    What you gonna use the bottom slot for?
     
  18. sco0by

    sco0by Mmm pie.

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    If it will fit - a VFD.

    But it depends how much room there is. I had to bring the dvd drive forward quite a bit to get it to close properly.

    The VFD is down the list of priorities - I want to get the PC itself up and running first. ;)
     
  19. Atomic

    Atomic Gerwaff

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    Its gonna be fun finding a VFD to fit in that space!

    Have you had any ideas on getting the button on the front to work?
    You *might* be able to use the serial port and software to make them perform macros? Worth asking about!
     
  20. papeniglio

    papeniglio Minimodder

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    I really admire your work :clap:

    Just hope I'll have enough time for modding one day.... :wallbash: :wallbash: DAMNED WORK :wallbash: :wallbash:

    Wait...., my father has an old SONY deck not working.... :idea: Maybe I could start a Project TAPE-PC thread as soon as I grab that stuff!!!!

    GeeK!
     

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